Monday, March 12, 2001
When Const. Jurgen Seewald took a bullet in his chest, he took it for all Northerners. His was yet another innocent life taken by that scourge known as family violence.
The actions of the community of Cape Dorset, which held a well-attended public meeting on the matter, tell us no one is shirking responsibility for what is an all too common event in our communities.
Nor are the RCMP, who have every reason to be bitter at the loss of one of their own, ignoring the underlying social causes of the intoxicated rage that destroys so many lives. Their understanding words at the memorial service told us that much.
The question is: What can be done to prevent further loss of life -- police and public -- until the threat is diminished?
While the public expects to be served and protected, we don't expect police to die doing their job.
Some officers say policing in the North is dangerous because of isolation and more RCMP positions are needed to increase officer safety. There are also officers who say Seewald's death could have taken place in any number of towns both north and south of 60.
But in the North, waiting for extra support can take days and the workload is constant and tiring. Whether or not officers working under those conditions are satisfied, are we?
We know now that it takes more than one mountie to get his man safely and takes no less than one criminal to chase an entire community inside their houses behind locked doors.
The Government of Nunavut must be pressed to recognize that a shortage of RCMP positions can bring tragic results.
Seewald should not have been on duty alone nor should residents of Cape Dorset have been left vulnerable for hours while a dangerous fugitive hid among them.
Money should not be an issue. How quickly staffing can be brought up to acceptable levels should be front and centre.
They're on the cutting edge, but they have nowhere to go.
Students in the Rae-Edzo jewelry program, which is coming to an end after four semesters, have been acquiring the skills to produce professional pieces of jewelry, but their limited experience will keep them from competing in the growing market.
The program needs money to further the studies and experience of the students, but it isn't clear if more money will be given.
This begs the question of what is the point of bringing the jewellers this far only to have their education leave them inexperienced, out of work and back at square one?
More funding should be allotted to the program to further the students' business know-how, teaching them to be productive members of the workforce.
The Nunavut Government has wasted a lot of time on time.
And while they have finally listened to residents and turned back the clock, we can't help but wonder why it took 18 months.
The government deserves a little credit for trying to run things in a timely fashion across the territory, but soon after the unified time zone was legislated the majority of people were clearly not happy.
Okalik said the recent change back to three zones shows the government listens to the people. But if that were true, why didn't the government survey more than 500 out of 26,000 residents about the proposed change?
Had they done so, they could have saved themselves a lot of time and money and everyone else a lot of confusion.
The heady days of the 1970s and early 80s appear to be making a comeback in the Beaufort-Delta and with them comes the temptation to view regulatory processes as hindrances to progress, as 'red tape' and nothing more.
The importance of considering the environmental impacts of development increases with growth. One need only drive around Tuktoyaktuk to see how busy things have become.
The tundra is interlaced with ice roads and the marks of tracked vehicles. Work yards are bustling. There's money to be made.
But the old saying 'Make hay while the sun shines,' does not apply here. The long-term good of the North is entirely dependent on the health of the environment. The people of the North will be here long after this boom has run its course.
Celebrating International Women's Day is not a sexist act. It is, in fact, just the opposite.
When the event first gained worldwide status in the early 20th century, it was seen as a way to gain equal footing with men.
Women have come a long way over the decades.
They are no longer barred from polling stations, and even hold elected office.
But women still have a long way to go.
We still earn only 73 per cent of the salaries men do; the courtrooms are full of women who are regularly victimized by male violence in all of its forms; and women are still under represented in many professions.
As long as these statistics remain, it is crucial that we set aside at least one day to celebrate women.
It's one more way to break down the barriers.
Editorial Comment
Malcolm Gorrill
Inuvik Drum
The Northern Youth Games have come and gone, but the memories generated by participants and spectators will last for quite a while.
Dozens of young people from the Delta and Sahtu converged upon Inuvik to take part in Arctic and Dene games.
No doubt for some athletes the games served as an introduction to some events, while for others the weekend was good practice for the upcoming Arctic Winter Games.
The competition was fun to watch, with athletes cheering each other on and showing good sportsmanship in other ways.
The Paulatuk Drummers and Dancers, and the Fort Good Hope Drummers, were among those who provided entertainment.
The event started off March 1 with an orientation session. Those taking part got a valuable lesson on how tobacco can hurt one's health. Alfred Moses, community health representative for Inuvik Public Health, gave a talk on the dangers of smoking.
Perhaps that evening made a few athletes realize how much more difficult tobacco can make it for them to excel, let alone the very real dangers associated with smoking.
Congratulations to all the participants, organizers, and volunteers.
Fair message
Many folks filed into the Midnight Sun Recreation Complex recently to take in the Health and Wellness Fair.
Nearly 20 exhibits displayed items on health issues and ways to promote a healthier lifestyle. The fair was the first of its kind for Inuvik, but similar fairs are to be held in the region.
Events like this can serve a valuable purpose by informing or reminding people of some prevalent health issues in the community.
Step in the right direction
Life is full of choices, some good, some bad; some hard, some easy.
Town council, and a committee studying the Department of Education, Culture and Employment's capital spending plans for Inuvik, have made a decision after, no doubt, a lot of discussion.
They are telling the department that they would like the new Aurora College campus built right away, and postpone the scheduled renovation to Sir Alexander Mackenzie school. Council and committee members must now await a response.
Building the college first is the right choice. Both projects are important, but the new campus has been promised for some time, and the college serves the entire region.
The kind of training offered at the college is especially important for this area now, with the opportunities relating to oil and gas development.
Putting the college first could also benefit SAMS, in that in a few years enrolment may rise and make it more likely the territorial government will fund renovations for the whole school, instead of just part of it as is now the case.
Editorial Comment
Derek Neary
Deh Cho Drum, Fort Simpson
The housing package deal that the Jean Marie River First Nation and Fort Liard's Acho Dene Koe band are working toward is a smart move.
Both First Nations stand to benefit, as Jean Marie River requires the jobs and revenue, while Fort Liard needs the housing.
Acho Dene Koe chief Judy Kotchea said she and her council have a goal of creating a training program for carpentry in Fort Liard. That way construction and maintenance of homes could be done within the community.
"There has to come a time where we have to start helping ourselves and stop waiting for somebody else to do things for us," Kotchea said. "It's our responsibility as a band to help our band members, and this is just one way of doing it."
Jean Marie chief Stanley Sanguez is planning something similar. In addition to training mill employees to produce the housing packages, he is planning a summer program for students, which would enable them to build six lodges in the community.
Those lodges would not only be useful for tourists, but would allow Jean Marie River to host smaller conferences and meetings.
Sanguez is also hopeful a joint venture can also be formed with an American company interested in producing furniture from aspen.
It's possibly a step towards greater autonomy for the band.
Sports galore
It's a busy time of year for sports and recreation across the NWT. Territorial championships have been held in a number of communities, including Fort Simpson, which hosted the senior men's recreational hockey championships during the last weekend in February and the Peewee hockey championships this past weekend.
Yellowknife entries proved dominant in both tournaments. It makes some people question how it might be possible to reach a competitive balance in the NWT -- a conundrum that's been around for many years and has been addressed in many ways. There has been no solution to date, and there's still no simple answers.
One highlight of the Peewee tournament was the skills competition. The spectators reacted enthusiastically to the event, and the players enjoyed the challenge. It's an idea that will hopefully catch on at all tournaments.
A final note on the Peewee tournament, isn't it unusual that all the visiting teams had the nickname "Huskies?" The Yellowknife Huskies. The Hay River Huskies. The Fort Smith (PWK) Huskies. When I was asking about the nicknames, some Fort Smith players realized the coincidence and then began discussing alternatives until settling on "Predators."
What's in a name?
Editorial Comment
Darrell Greer
Kivalliq News
It is good to see Nunavut Tunngavik Inc. (NTI) decide to try and negotiate an end to the Noah Kadlak situation in Coral Harbour before taking the matter back before the courts.
However this seemingly never-ending saga on the traditional polar bear hunt finally plays out -- one thing we don't need to see is another large sum of beneficiaries' money going into the all ready deep pockets of lawyers willing to fight the good fight for such a nobel and justifiable cause.
One thing that does worry us here at Kivalliq News, however, is NTI president Paul Quassa's assertion that every Inuit has the right to conduct the same type of hunt that Kadlak proposes.
Should Kadlak ever succeed in his quest, it doesn't take a huge leap of the imagination to envision a number of testosterone driven young hunters, desperately lacking in experience, heading out onto the land for their first traditional kill.
And, although we applaud NTI's decision to take the path of negotiation over that of the courts, we are concerned over Quassa's apparent stance that NTI's interpretation of the Land Claims Agreement completely outweighs the wishes of the majority of Nunavummiut.
Should the vocal majority not want NTI to return to court to battle the Department of Sustainable Development, yet again, over Kadlak's proposal, Quassa should listen.
Who decides how much money should be spent by the Nunavut Government and NTI fighting over one proposal, to kill one bear?
This money has to come for somewhere and where it would eventually come from is the pockets of all Nunavummiut.
With so many needing so much in our fledgling territory, it is hard to justify the costs of another court battle over a single hunting proposal.
There seems to be little doubt Quassa firmly believes in the stance he has taken.
And, as such, he should use every ploy in his considerable political arsenal to have Minister Akesuk see things his way during the upcoming negotiations.
However, at the end of the day, should the minister still give thumbs down to the proposal, it would be in the best interests of all Nunavummiut for Quassa to accept his decision, once and for all.
Should this matter end up back in court, we won't have all that long to wait until the next NTI election to find out how Quassa fared in judging popular opinion.